{"id":587230,"date":"2026-04-05T14:44:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T14:44:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/587230\/"},"modified":"2026-04-05T14:44:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T14:44:13","slug":"ducati-playing-catch-up-to-aprilia-but-insists-nothing-is-lost-in-motogp-title-fight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/587230\/","title":{"rendered":"Ducati playing \u201ccatch-up\u201d to Aprilia but insists \u201cnothing is lost\u201d in MotoGP title fight"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ducati has admitted it is no longer MotoGP\u2019s benchmark manufacturer, but insists it still has a chance of overhauling Aprilia and continuing its title-winning run.<\/p>\n

Marco\u00a0Bezzecchi<\/a>\u2019s victory at last weekend\u2019s United States Grand Prix reinforced the belief that Aprilia now has the best bike in MotoGP.<\/p>\n

Although the\u00a0Noale factory had already emerged as a regular winner in the second half of last season, several factors suggested Ducati might still retain an edge over its rivals. Marc Marquez<\/a> was crucially absent from the final leg of 2025, while Aprilia\u2019s victories in the opening two rounds of 2026 at Buriram and Goiania also carried an asterisk, with Michelin having brought special rear tyres to those races.<\/p>\n

But with\u00a0Bezzecchi again dominating under more conventional conditions at Austin, even Ducati has now conceded that the balance of power has shifted in Aprilia\u2019s favour.<\/p>\n

Ducati team<\/a> manager Davide Tardozzi believes the Borgo Panigale marque has been outdeveloped by Aprilia over the last 12 months, leaving its riders playing \u201ccatch-up\u201d in races.<\/p>\n

\u201cAprilia has improved significantly,\u201d Tardozzi told Sky Italy. \u201cI looked at last year\u2019s data and this year\u2019s data, and it\u2019s clear that\u00a0Aprilia has made a remarkable leap in performance of seven- to eight-tenths of a second.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI evaluated the two\u00a0Aprilia riders from last year and this year: [Ai] Ogura and Bezzecchi. Bezzecchi had a pace that was about 0.7s faster, and Ogura was 0.8s faster.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve improved by 0.1\u20130.2s, so clearly\u00a0Aprilia\u2019s growth is impressive. They have strong riders, just like we do, but right now we\u2019re playing catch-up a bit.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s clear that we expect something from the engineers. I believe Gigi is the first one who isn\u2019t happy with this situation, so I\u2019m certain we\u2019ll work on it, and I hope we can bring something to Jerez\u00a0already.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are still 19 races left; nothing is lost, even if it seems like we\u2019re falling behind right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Marc <\/p>\n

Marc Marquez, Ducati Team, Jorge Martin, Aprilia Racing Team, Marco Bezzecchi, Aprilia Racing<\/p>\n

Photo by: MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group<\/p>\n

After the opening three races, Aprilia has a commanding lead in all three championships, while Ducati is having to fend off KTM for second position.<\/p>\n

Fabio di Giannantonio<\/a> is Ducati\u2019s best representative in the riders\u2019 standings, trailing not only factory Aprilia duo Bezzecchi and Jorge Martin<\/a> but also KTM\u2019s Pedro Acosta<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In the teams\u2019 standings,\u00a0Ducati sits a distant fourth, behind Aprilia, Trackhouse and KTM.<\/p>\n

Ducati does have an edge over KTM in the constructors\u2019 table, but it is already facing a 32-point deficit to Aprilia, which has also claimed one sprint win in addition to its three grand prix victories.<\/p>\n

Ducati\u2019s campaign has been compromised by the physical condition of its star rider Marquez, who is yet to make a full recovery from his Indonesia injuries. Fermin Aldeguer<\/a> also missed a race due to a training accident, while some incidents out of Ducati\u2019s control\u00a0\u2013 such as a tyre blow-out in Thailand \u2013 have also cost the manufacturer some vital points.<\/p>\n

“It’s up to us to improve”<\/p>\n

Tardozzi remains confident that Ducati can still fight back in the championship, but warned that the outfit has to do more to ensure the riders have the best package possible.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll continue to tip my hat to\u00a0Aprilia because they\u2019ve made a significant technical leap,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe we have a chance to catch up in the championship. We\u2019re at the third race; there have been some unlucky incidents, but beyond that, we need to be a bit more careful in our management, in really understanding what the riders need.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there have been situations that prevented the riders from performing at their best, so it\u2019s up to us to try to improve, and certainly\u00a0Aldeguer and Marc aren\u2019t in top form.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Marc <\/p>\n

Marc Marquez, Ducati Team<\/p>\n

Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography \/ LAT Images \/ via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Marquez endured a tough race at the Circuit of The Americas last weekend, finishing a distant fifth after serving a long-lap penalty early in the race. Given his previous track record at Austin, his lack of speed led to fresh concerns about his health and the time he needed to recover his form.<\/p>\n

While acknowledging Marquez isn\u2019t fully fit,\u00a0Tardozzi highlighted how the seven-time world champion still showed flashes of pace at Austin.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn my opinion, the analysis is that Marc isn\u2019t 100% fit,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll focus on the middle part of the [Austin] race, when he overtook Raul Fernandez and Closed in on Pecco [Bagnaia] and Enea [Bastianini]. Over those five or six laps, he gained eight-tenths of a second on\u00a0Bezzecchi.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, when he\u2019s in good form, he\u2019s capable of riding like a number one rider for a portion of the race.\u201d<\/p>\n

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